Maceda tells Susan: Don’t accept National Artist award for FPJ

An opposition stalwart on Thursday advised actress Susan Roces not to accept the National Artist award for her late husband Fernando Poe Jr, alleging Malacañang will be able to boost its image at her expense. Former Sen. Ernesto Maceda said that if Roces were to go to Malacañang and accept the award, she would be perceived as reversing her stand that Poe, and not President Arroyo, won the last presidential elections. Malacañang on Wednesday named Poe, a losing candidate to President Arroyo during the last polls, as one of seven National Artists this year. "To accept the award from the president is tantamount to reversing her stand that she (Arroyo) is not the legitimate president ... It would be an act accepting the president has the legitimate right to make and sign the award," Maceda said. Poe's camp lodged an electoral protest against the Mrs. Arroyo after the canvassing, alleging more than one million of his votes were tampered with and illegally transferred to the latter’s votes. Maceda, who lost his senatorial bid in the 2004 elections under Poe's Koalisyon ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino (KNP), attended the launching of the “Kapihan sa Senado" media forum aimed at raising public awareness on proposed amendments to the Constitution. He claimed Malacañang already tried to politicize the issue even when Poe was at his deathbed at the St. Luke's Medical Center in Quezon City in December 2004. "When [Poe] laid on his deathbed, Malacañang officials led by (Executive Secretary Eduardo) Ermita were sending messages inquiring if he will receive the National Artist award. Since then the issue has become political," he recalled his wife Marichu, a known figure in show business, as narrating. Former Sen. Vicente Sotto III, also a supporter of Poe, said that even if Roces rejects the recognition, it would not change the public’s views on the late action star. "As far as friends and people who love FPJ are concerned, he's always been a National Artist. Malacanang's conferment is not necessary because he's always been a National Artist," Sotto said. Malacañang has scheduled the awarding for the new National Artists on June 9. GMANews.TV